UAE students in the UK made to feel at home with London iftar

Students helped organise the event that brought the UAE community together

Caption: UAE students and diplomats stand in front of a portrait of Sheikh Zayed after an Iftar meal in London. Ajay Arora / UAE embassy in London

For UAE students based in the UK, embarking upon Ramadan away from their homes comes with its challenges – but with the support of the embassy in London, at least they are not alone.

The diplomatic mission recently hosted an iftar meal for UAE students, medical visitors and other invited guests at London’s Millennium Gloucester Hotel in the upmarket area of South Kensington.

In the hotel’s large conservatory, everyone was able to indulge in a sumptuous dinner that combined Emirati and Middle Eastern cuisine. Towards the centre of the room, resting against a palm tree, sat a portrait of Sheikh Zayed.

The  annual event is part of a wider effort to help UK-based Emirati students to feel part of a community and talk with each other – but also to emphasise the importance of maintaining the identity of the UAE abroad, said Charge d’affaires Rouda Al Otaiba

“We try to make it very social, far away from formalities with different games, and they can chat and interact,” she said.

“As you can see, most of the volunteers today are our students,” added Ms Al Otaiba.

The Charge d’affaires said she shared greetings from the UAE’s rulers who asked that Emiratis abroad are looked after and given all the support they can to prosper.

“I delivered this message and I’m so happy that they enjoyed the night and it went well,” said Ms Al Otaiba.

The iftar meal was one of many that the UAE embassy has attended in London this Ramadan. Others have seen the involvement of foreign minister Jeremy Hunt, opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn and leaders from a variety of different faiths.

Mohamed Al Zeyoudi, from Fujairah, said the desire to support students abroad from the UAE government was incredibly motivating and inspiring.

The “great impression” he took from the iftar ceremony in South Kensington was a “feeling that we are living back home". Mr Al Zeyoudi is a second-year student at the Royal Holloway, University of London and is studying accounting and finance.

Now well-fed and the fast broken, the crowd continued on with games and a raffle. The evening was almost “over-subscribed,” laughed Youssef Hassane, the embassy’s Chief Economic Advisor.

Mohamed Ghassan Al Yousef said his second Ramadan away from family was “quite a challenge” and “quite an experience” that in many ways was good because he would benefit from it.

“Living away now doing my masters in London I had to learn how to cook, I had to learn how to do all these life skills, if you wish, to just go and be independent,” said Mr Al Yousef, who is studying sustainable energy at Queen Mary University of London

“Back home we are used to having everything ready from parents and family, god bless them. We take it for granted,” he added.

Mr Al Yousef’s master's degree course means he is unlikely to go back to the UAE until September but he still stays in touch with his family, saying technological increases meant it was easier to speak to them.

Events such as the iftar meal were common he said, but “Ramadan is a special one because it is when we gather as a family and hopefully, we all consider ourselves a family, Emiratis and non-Emiratis.”